Here are better views of two of the quilts showed in the group in yesterday's blog. I added four of Olga's small pieces to the Thomas Contemporary Quilt Collection last year. They are so delicate and amazing, I hope you can see her work in person some day.
"Red
Hen" Olga Norris - Hampshire, England 2012 7.5"W x 11"L
Hand dyed silk fabric, silk thread, hand stitched. This type of stitching is in the style of Kantha work done in Bengal http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kantha but so much more refined and expressive.
Here is a detail. (Don't you think this hen is has a satisfied smile?) Notice how the hair is stitched to give it a different texture. The black outline is the under fabric showing between the cut out pieces of silk. I have tried to think of a name for this technique which is done in slightly different ways by several different artists, notably Terry Grant of Beaverton, OR. Outlined applique? Edged applique? Puzzle applique? Channel applique? It is not really reverse applique, a very old layered technique used by the San Blas natives off the coast of Panama.
The silk back is faced so the back of the work is not visible.
"The Crows Story" Olga Norris - Hampshire, England 2012 7.1"W x 7.1"L
Hand dyed silk fabric, silk thread, hand stitched. Also done in the rows of running stitch and the back fabric creating the black outlines.
A wonderful crow shape - I wish I could hear his tale. And a four toed foot! I am especially attracted to Olga's rendition of hands and feet.
Again the back is covered. And an elegant label with the contact at the very bottom.
I have my eye on another, larger quilt from Olga. Can you guess which one?
7 comments:
Del, thank you for your kind words about my work. I have always thought of the cut away technique I use as a reverse applique technique. It is like the Mola technique in so far as the uppermost layer is cut away to reveal the lower layer. But there may be another name too.
Fascinating work!!
I don't think I have seen Olga's work before. I love it! Such a strong sense of shape and line.
Thanks for introducing this artist. Her work is so quiet but strong.
I've seen her work before, it's beautiful!
Love Olga's work, thank you for sharing.
Wonderful, wonderful stitching. Simple and very elegant. I've recently taken a workshop from Bobbi Finley (book: Tile Quilt Revival). A fairly old style, the subject is broken into planes/section, fabric cut/fussy cut, and hand appliqued leaving a "grout" line/area between each appliqued piece. Also is done very scrappy...each piece appliqued. I believe there's a quilt in the International Quilt Museum collection. Very, very interesting results. A fun project to develop and work on. I wonder if Olga's process is in someway based on this old style. Her work is exquisite.
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